Coir Pots: Yes it's another recyclable pot

Okay - this is something I saw in Toronto at Canada Blooms this spring (2008) but there it was again at LANTA. I realized I did not properly try out my single new pot this spring- I put something into it and it went outdoors and that is the last I saw of it. I only have a single pot again so I can't feed it to the worms. It looks much stiffer than the other pots - may be full of glue -  so I wouldn't want to risk feeding it to the worms anyway. They have been through enough this week  with the nematodes and all.  This pot will join the recyclable pot test - I needed more basil anyway so why not pot up the three different recyclable pots with growing mix and add some basil seed? Well, why not - but not today. The "potting mix" is outdoors and probably frozen.... It's a task for another day.

Ecotainers: New to me

A trip to the Landscape Alberta Nursery Trades (LANTA) trade show last week and I found another "new" biodegradable pot. Ecotainers  are round pots made of Plastarch (PSM). They have only been on the market for two years so there are no long term studies yet. I guess I'll have to give them a try. They are marketed as fully biodegradable and compostable. Of course my compost outdoors is frozen solid this time of year but I wonder if my worms would eat them? I think I will throw a pot in my worm bin just to see. To find out who is selling them in our area contact sales@floralmarketingsolutions.com.

Good Idea: Cow Patty & Other Compostable Pots

I have been using plastic pots in all forms and sizes for years and many of them can't be returned or recycled so I was delighted to find Cow Patty pots at the Garden Writers Conference in September. They just arrived in the mail today and I am delighted to share a photo of them. Will they work? Who knows. Will I try them? Definitely. Stay tuned. This is one dairy farmer's recycled manure put to good use. I think.